Harris confirms that Craig can return to full training

Tony Craig has been given the green light to return to full first team training, Millwall manager Neil Harris has confirmed.

The 30-year-old defender has been out of action since suffering a serious injury during the 0-0 draw with Bradford City at The Den back in October.

And after a lengthy rehabilitation process, the club captain has now received the news that he can step up his return to first team duty.

"Tony's been in training for the last two weeks but it's been non-contact," Harris revealed.

"Physically he has been working like the boys do during pre-season and is fully fit in a sense of running duties. All that he is missing is minutes on the pitch.

"Bobby Bacic has worked tirelessly to get him to the stage he is at now and, as you can imagine, Tony has been a complete professional during his recovery. The way he has approached everything has been spot on, from his attitude around the training ground to how he has lived his life away from his work.

"The next move for Tony is to get through a few days of training with contact and he can pretty much go straight into the U21 squad to get some minutes. But naturally we have to be careful because he has been out for a long time."

Craig's return is a timely boost for Harris and his squad as The Lions prepare for the final stretch of the season.

"If he can come through some U21 games before taking his place back in the first team squad then it will be like a new signing for us," the boss added.

"Your club captain coming back is the best bit of news we could of had as the loan window closes.

"We're not getting too carried away because Tony has some weeks to go before he would be ready for squad selection, but it is really good news that we can have him back on the training pitch and amongst the boys in the dressing room.

"All players young and old will thrive with him back in the squad because his leadership and experience is vital for us."